Thirdly, you know that time when the whole internet thought we were cancelled? We genuinely weren’t. The book coming to an end now isn’t a revelation that the rumours then were ‘true all along’. If it had been true then, I’d have told you then. I think that controversy, and the extremely welcome reaction from fans, ended up doing a lot of good.

Lastly, and this is really important, while we didn’t know this would be the last arc until comparatively recently, I had it in mind that it was possible it would be from the time I started plotting it. Indeed, the end of this arc marks the end of what I had planned for the book when I started. One of the images right at the finish is what I always felt I was heading towards, and I’m very pleased I got there. So: you will get a real, thorough, proper, ending, not just of ‘Vampire State’, but of the whole run. It hasn’t been rushed to fit the space, it hasn’t been compromised, it won’t just suddenly cut off: it’s what I intended. I think the Annual and the two remaining issues finish off one of my best stories in any media, and that story is actually the entirety of Captain Britain and MI-13. You’ll see what I mean a bit more next issue. This is a comic with a proper ending.

Sad day indeed. Don’t understand why they didn’t slap Dark Reign tags on the book and lump it in with those titles for a potential sales bump. It has Dr Doom and Norman Osborn guest appearances and they could have had Cornell play those angles up a little more without sacrificing much of the awesomeness contained therein. Doubt it would have saved the book, but maybe eeked another arc out of it at least.

Quinn Hopkins

That’s upsetting. CB&MI13 was one of the few books at Marvel that I was enjoying on a regular basis. It will be missed. Hopefully Cornell can get a more A-List gig and incorporate some of his characters and plotlines into that one. I dunno… Thunderbolts, maybe? Or an Avengers book. Anything team-oriented would satisfy me at this point.

J. Jonah

Such a shame. And here I was, wondering how Cornell would be able to top the awesomeness of this current arc, but I guess he’ll never get the chance. This book has been a consistant purchase for me since the beginning, and it’s a shame to see it go. At the very least, Cornell has a chance to wrap it up all nicely, and with any luck, the team will show up in other titles. For shame, Marvel. This is Adam Beechan doing Cassandra Cain-levels of disappointment I’m getting here, or New X-Men getting cancelled-levels of disappointment. How can this book go down when Loeb’s Hulk and Wolverine: Origins still survive? Is there no justice in the universe?

Ahem…

Anyways, hopefully they’ve give Cornell another good project, like a Young Avengers ongoing, to work on. Thanks for all the good times, Paul.

Tom Daylight

“So: you will get a real, thorough, proper, ending, not just of ‘Vampire State’, but of the whole run. It hasn’t been rushed to fit the space, it hasn’t been compromised, it won’t just suddenly cut off: it’s what I intended.”

carloshll726

Jab

J. Jonah
May 19, 2009 at 2:12 pm
“I just wish that Bendis would go over to DC and ruin their books.
Who reads Bendis any way?! He’s like a retarded walking brain tumor.”

What a blatantly childish and flat out unintelligent comment.

While you may think he has “ruined” Marvel’s books, they are some of the biggest sellers month after month. You basically just said “I wish Bendis would go to DC and make them successful!”

Also, aside from your brain tumor comment, which pretty much proves you have no ability to form an actual opinion worth noting, as I said, Bendis sells well every month. So please, don’t ask such a dumb question as “who reads him lololol”. You know people do. Don’t play ignorant.

I’m one of those people, and I do it because Bendis is at the top of his game right now. All his current books are great.

BrentLambert

Or maybe I’m not enough of an intellectual to construe it as some twisted psychological make-up of a person unable to form a cohesive comment.

I get why you might have been offended and want to jump to your writer’s defense, but a joke does not immeadiately classify someone as unintelligent. You were just as brazen and rude as you thought Jonah was being.

carloshll726

Think Marvel should really give Union Jack a serious ongoing title. Plus, they should put the words “Britain’s Fighting Spirit” at the top of his logo. Like how the Fantastic Four thing says “The World’s Greatest Comics Magazine”. Union Jack’s seriously awesome stuff!

Matthew

I can’t believe Marvel would cancel one of my favorite books! I loved how it didn’t involved all the american superheros and focused on the European ones. I hate that they did it, but i hope they won’t forget the team altogether.

carloshll726

Who here remembers the Excalibur: Sword of Power comic book mini-series? I really liked the costume that Captain Britain had on back there, it’s a heck of a lot better than whatever he’s wearing in Captain Britain & MI-13. I hated Marvel for changing his look again.

David B.

carloshll726, your lack of faith is the sole reason this series got canceled! I blame you for everything!
No, but seriously, this is quite sad news. I loved the Wisdom miniseries (it led into the MI ongoing) and bought every issue of this I could. Obviously, it still didn’t sell enough and I’ll just have to hope Cornell gets a series that doesn’t die out. I won’t say it isn’t fair for two reasons: One, such a statement would be a double-negative and hate those. Two: Marvel needs to make money.
If I may be selfish for one second though, why does their need to make money outweigh my need to love this comic? WHY? WHYYYYYYYYY? I read many of their titles, but mainly to see how what happens in the Marvel universe impacts my favorite titles (i.e. the so-so Secret Invasion helping kick-start Agents of Atlas and the New Punisher comic that I both quite enjoy). With my favorite titles going the way of the Polar Bear (zing!) what reason will I have to muddle through Dark Avengers (I won’t insult New Avengers though, I still think its a solid, quality comic most of the time)?
Sigh.
At least there is an off chance Wisdom will pop into another project Cornell works on as it seems he has an affinity for the character–and Captain Britain but I prefer ol’ Pete Wisdom.

B

This is disheartening, but an expected move nonetheless. It was a good book and will be missed, but it made one rather sizable mistake: even though it’s not really the same thing, they still should have called it Excalibur anyway. Name recognition works, New Mutants sold out in two days at the shop I work at and it’s alright, but not a book I’d imagine to sell out in two days based solely on quality. And a lot of comic books sales are based on nostalgia. Just think about how many kids you see in a store that aren’t there for CCGs. As for why other books succeed it’s also pretty simple. Hulk has Ed McGuiness. He’s popular and rightly so. Wolverine: Origins is a Wolverine book. If it was Wolverine and the Pet Avengers it would move. Back to Captain Britain it was a good read and will be missed, but that happens. Also, 3.99 books at a 22 page count are ridiculous. At least throw in an 8 page back-up. Last note, ZeoVGM’s paychecks definitely, or should, say Marvel on them. Nobody, aside from a Marvel employee, should be that passionate about their products. I buy a fair number of them, but damn.

amelia_daz

I don’t blame Bendis. I buy and enjoy his books too. Which is why I doubly don’t understand why they can’t take some change from that extra $3.99 dollar and pad the sales of this book to keep it alive. Esp. when they’re printing 8 trillion limited series right now. Or just raise the price of this one to $3.99. Or whatever – just keep it coming.

Chris

Damn. This sucks. This book has been a pleasure to read, and aside from one issue having some questionable art, I can honestly say that this is probably Marvel’s third best book behind Thor and Captain America.
I’m sad that it’s ending. Letter writing campagin to Marvel, anyone?

Eric

Ortiz

I don’t blame Marvel or Joe Q, I blame US (not the United States, I mean you and me), Marvel or any company just care about books that sell, no matter if they are good or bad, if it sells you can bet it’s gonna be in the shelf every month. Too bad, well, at least I’m gonna save some money. Peace.

Stephen

ian33407

I appreciated very much the interactions between characters in this book, but I wasn’t comfortable with so many sworded characters. Paul Cornell looked to have a lot of ideas for this title, but I think it needed one or two shorter story-arcs or sel-contained tales to really show the MI13 aspect instead on jumping into the super-heroes routine…I owe Mr Cornell the return of Meggan and the Black Knight who are two of my favourites characters ever ; I’d rather prefered seeing Blade into New Avengers that said.

carloshll726

Truth

Regarding the Bendis conversation here, I agree that Bendis sucks. I’d like to invite him over to suck up the dust bunnies behind my fridge. Bendis has ruined (forever) nearly half the characters he has written. But yes, he does sell comic books.

Bendis is like hip hop and rap. It’s a poor excuse for music (sometimes there are NO melodies and NO harmonies, leaving only rhythmic chants — and sometimes there are NO musicians used, just loops) but it sells to juveniles with undeveloped musical tastes. Like Bendis, regardless of quality, hip-hop sells.

Bendis is like MacDonalds. Everyone knows it is a poor substitute for a real burger. Everyone knows it is bad for you. It ain’t filet mignon, it’s mush burgers. But like Bendis, it sells.

We live in an age where consumers prefer mush burgers to steak, an age where culturully-uneducated consumers prefer hip-hop to music, an age where an obviously crooked, mentally-stunted child of a previous president can get elected president, and despite horrible (even criminal) behaviour in his first term, was still elected a second time by the ingorant, frightened masses. So it’s not a surprise that a writer like Bendis sells. But his sales don’t indicate that he’s any better than a hip-hop mush burger. McBendis! The man who makes a living off the sensationalistic desecration of the House that Jack and Stan built.

McBendis sells books by raping and pillaging characters that were previously held sacred by Marvel’s Editors. Under Quesada’s “anything goes” regime, McBendis has gotten away with murder (of some of my favorite characters that I loved for over thirty years). McBendis has zero respect for the past. If McBendis had written for editors like Lee, Thomas, Gruenwald, Schwartz, or Goodwin, he wouldn’t have lasted two months. Because he’s unable to write a story without wrecking somebody else’s character. Please tell me what Marvel characters Bendis has created. Has he brought anything at all to the party?

carloshll726

Snikt Snakt

I tracked down all the previous issues at my LCS beforehand (they only ordered one copy for the store, and no one bought them!) and looooved the book. Sad to see it go, I love quirky superteam concepts…

JD

Man, that’s a bit of bad news, isn’t it? I’m glad the series will be able to have a proper wrap-up, but MI13 was one of my favorites for sure and I was hoping it would be around constantly for a good long run. If they don’t end up changing their minds and bringing it back, I hope they’ll let Paul Cornell start a new series with these characters at some point n the near future. I think if nothing else, the story he did to kick off the series during Secret Invasion really shows especially well that he knows how to write a story to draw a reader’s attention. And at least for sure in my case, keep that attention. I’m sure, given the chance, he’ll be able to deliver as good or better results in the future.

JD

Oh, and regarding the Bendis debate here? Loved House of M, loved Secret Invasion, but Dark Reign is kind of wearing thin on me and quickly. It rankles me to have to read about blasted Norman Osborne getting away with so much, it’s just depressing, so I’ve been taking a pass on a lot of it and hoping it blows over soon. Though the Iron Man series has never been better I have to say. If MI13 were still going, I’d say I’d have loved to see a crossover there or something.

Danny Potter

ZeoVGM is super funny. i bet he is Joe Q defending his company, how lame. Defend “one more day” for me please i want to hear how canceling continuity can be a good story choice. Bendis is gods gift to the illiterate, cause he always seems to get sweet artists.

Jellobay

It amazes me how much hatred there is for Bendis out there. Yet it seems that all the Bendis haters know every thing that happens in all his books.
If you don’t like the man don’t read his books.
I’ve been reading comics since the 80’s and I have to say that overall Marvel is more entertaining than it has been in a long time.
MI13 was a good book, but if it doesn’t sell this is what happens. Pretty much end of story there.

DaVeO

So after this, only comics I’ll be getting from Marvel are Captain America, Runaways and Agents of Atlas. And when Agents get cancelled (not long after dark Reign is over I’m sure) down to two (and reading Herc off a friend). And to think I almost left DC recently for Marvel. DC is firing on all cylinders this year, Marvel with Dark Reign is a one-trick pony. Not so much with the House of Ideas. Maybe House of Idea and then beat that Idea to death.

Over Saturation of spin-offs garauntee people cannot afford to try new books out. Remember when Marvel was creative? Had balls? Yeah, sure Dark Reign sells. Big Brother is also a huge ratings hit, but would you call it quality?

Capt. Britain was quality. But instead of greater support we have people lapping up another Wolverine title, or Spider-Man, or Avengers or Dark Reign mini. What a sad marketplace we live in. No new titles for me from Marvel. What’s the point? They disappoint me with with Omega Flight (sold well, reduced to mini, never heard from again) and now Capt. Britain is pushed to the side (3.99 comics to support lower selling title, I call BS on that one Marvel).

Truth
May 20, 2009 at 6:48 am
“Regarding the Bendis conversation here, I agree that Bendis sucks. I’d like to invite him over to suck up the dust bunnies behind my fridge. Bendis has ruined (forever) nearly half the characters he has written. But yes, he does sell comic books.

Bendis is like hip hop and rap. It’s a poor excuse for music (sometimes there are NO melodies and NO harmonies, leaving only rhythmic chants — and sometimes there are NO musicians used, just loops) but it sells to juveniles with undeveloped musical tastes. Like Bendis, regardless of quality, hip-hop sells.”

Saying hip hop is a poor excuse for music is so ignorant and really, in this day and age, something an out of touch old man would say.

Listen to Lupe Fiasco’s “The Cool” album, then try and tell me it’s a “poor excuse for music”. And this is coming from someone who is mainly a rock fan.

“Bendis is like MacDonalds. Everyone knows it is a poor substitute for a real burger. Everyone knows it is bad for you. It ain’t filet mignon, it’s mush burgers. But like Bendis, it sells.”

As for Bendis, I read him because of the quality. This is a very niche genre. People don’t buy his books because they’re mindless. Only dorks like us buy comic books. People buy Bendis’ comics, month after month, because they are good reads. Simple as that.

I mean if you don’t like it, that’s perfectly fine. That’s why you (I would assume) don’t buy them. But please, get rid of the “everyone knows” attitude, as if it is some sort of fact.

“We live in an age where consumers prefer mush burgers to steak, an age where culturully-uneducated consumers prefer hip-hop to music, an age where an obviously crooked, mentally-stunted child of a previous president can get elected president, and despite horrible (even criminal) behaviour in his first term, was still elected a second time by the ingorant, frightened masses.”

Wow, you really come off as quite the know-it-all. Yes, some consumers may like mush burgers to steak. Maybe they think it… tastes better? I know, opinions are crazy. And hip hop IS music. This is an unarguable fact. You not liking it doesn’t make it not music.

And yes, some beats are loops. You can create music on a computer. You don’t need to play an actual instrument for it to be music. Whistling is music, and that isn’t an instrument. To say it isn’t music is to be ignorant and foolish. It still takes talent to do. If you want to argue levels of talent, that’s okay.

The fact that we’re even arguing Bendis in this news post at all is sad. It’s not even on topic anyway. But wow, you are coming off insanely pretentious and ignorant here. Trying to compare people enjoying Bendis to voting for a terrible president? Trying far too hard to be a witty blog writer with your “McBendis” crap?

Danny Potter
May 20, 2009 at 9:08 am
“ZeoVGM is super funny. i bet he is Joe Q defending his company, how lame. Defend “one more day” for me please i want to hear how canceling continuity can be a good story choice. Bendis is gods gift to the illiterate, cause he always seems to get sweet artists.”

You’re not -really- this dumb, are you?

So, I’m Joe Q because I thought it was immature to call someone a “brain tumor”? Or maybe you somehow think me saying all comics will be $4 eventually, was somehow defending Marvel. No, I was stating a fact. Nowhere did I say I agreed with it. It sucks. But I was stating a fact.

As for One More Day, it was terrible. Thankfully, it doesn’t matter, as Amazing Spidey is the best it’s been in years. Almost everything since last July has been quality stuff.

As for Bendis, I was disappointed in Secret Invasion and most of what he did last year (aside from the always-great USM). However, with his Dark Reign stuff, I think it’s great. I’m loving his books right now.

Yeah, I must be Joe Q for having an opinion that many people share.
Please, grow up.

artiepants

@ Jeff ~
“So in a year, you’re going to stop buying comic books completely? ”
yeah, i suspect that will be the case ~ my pull is probably 1/3 of what it was a year ago, and i’m losing 3-4 books over the next couple months to cancellations and creative team changes, i think i’ll be down to about 8-9 books by August.

It’s cool though, i quit comics entirely in 96 due to all the trash (Ultimate Spider-Man brought me back in Summer of 01) because of the overwhelming crappiness, i can certainly due it again ~ i’d still probably follow a few things by my favorite creators like Bru, Fraction, Jason Aaron and Bendis in trades, but it’ll be a LOT less then i used too…

@ Truth ~ whatever, man. (and good retort Jeff, i was going to write something far less kind, but self-censored)

Thor-El

It does indeed suck. And it’s another nail in my Marvel collecting coffin. As these series end or are getting cancelled, I’m not starting anything new. So if Marvel continues to cancel books I buy, they’re ultimately just saving me money, and eventually losing my readership entirely.

Greg N

This is unbearably upsetting. One of the few books I looked forward to and always worth my cash I really don’t understand why something so unique must always go. Paul, Leonard and the team did an outstanding job this was a book all team books should look up to. Again this is disappointing news my heart sunk reading this.
Bloody hell!
-Greg

Danny Potter

@ Jeff ~
No man, I’n not so dumb as to think that you are indeed Joe Q. It just seems that you are so ready and willing to defend Marvel i just thought that you might be getting a paycheck for all that D**K riding your doing on their behalf.

Ollywood

i’m really gutted by this news. mi13 was one of the only marvel books i read. it’s nice to read about superheroes in marvel who aren’t just defending new york (it’s one of the things i like about thor too).

as for the bendis issue; the only books of his i read are powers, in trade (just read ’25 greatest dead superheroes of all time’ and it was freakin awesome. one of the best stories i’ve read in a long time) and ult spidey which has managed to make me enjoy spiderman, which is unprecedented. even ultimatum hasn’t managed to ruin it (yet?).

basically, it’s a sad fact that not all good stuff sells and a lot of crap does, but it’s not bendis’ fault. the passive aggressive bendis bashing just comes across as a bit childish.